The Biden administration’s support for Israel’s war in Gaza has come under intensified scrutiny after it revealed it had bypassed Congress to supply tank shells, and was reported not to be carrying out continual assessments of whether Israel was committing possible war crimes.

Israeli tanks were reported to have reached the centre of Khan Younis on Sunday, after battling through stiff resistance in the southern city which is overcrowded by civilians who have fled fighting in the north. Israeli airstrikes pounded the city blocks west of the frontline.

Heavy fighting was also reported in the Jabaliya refugee camp and the Shejaiya area of Gaza City, in northern Gaza, where the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have said they were dealing with remaining pockets of resistance, but residents described some of the most intense combat of the war.